Sesshomaru In Love
by Calyco
Summary: Acting on an inexplicable impulse, Sesshomaru saves the life of a human woman. Complications arise and he must team up with his halfbrother to protect the legacy their father left behind. Sesshomaru x OC.


Disclaimer: I do not own InuYasha.

A/N: This story is written using American-English grammar and conventions. I am not familiar enough with Japanese honorifics, etc to use them, so am using the ones that I know. I hope you can enjoy the story anyway :)

Sesshomaru in Love

I'll never know what brought me here.

As if somebody led my hand.

It seems I hardly had to steer,

My course was planned.

And Destiny it guides us all,

By its every rise and fall.

But only for a moment,

Time enough to catch our breath again.

And we're just another piece of the puzzle.

Just another part of the Plan.

How one life touches the other,

Is so hard to understand.

So we'll walk this road together,

And try to go as far as we can.

And we've been waiting for the moment in time,

Ever since the world began.

…..from the song "Ever Since the World Began" written by Jim Peterik & Frankie Sullivan.

Meeting

The bandits swept into the small village in the hour before dawn. Like small, black ants they poured silently over the hills that wrapped the hamlet in a protective embrace. Their first victims were slain before waking.

At first, she didn't know what had awakened her from a troubled sleep. For nearly a minute she lay very still, listening uncomprehendingly to the sounds of scuffling in the dirt accompanied by soft thuds of heavy objects hitting the earth. When she finally realized, with horror, that she was hearing the sounds of a deadly, yet nearly silent battle, she acted swiftly.

In the darkness, she was able to slip away unnoticed. From a place of safety, not far from the village, she watched as the place that had been her home for the past twelve years was raided with deadly efficiency. Her sapphire eyes betrayed no emotion as the flames reflected, sparkling, off of them.

Then she saw the silhouette of two small figures running toward her, their arms around each other for support. She recognized a brother and sister that she had known since their births. They were trying to escape the slaughter by fleeing to the safety of the small hollow, which was rendered nearly invisible by the heavy underbrush that surrounded it. From the hollow, the woman watched tensely.

Halfway to their goal, they were spotted. A lone man on horseback, presumably the leader of the bandits, let out a shout and began to run the helpless children down. Without hesitation, she left the safety of her hiding place and running with speed she did not know she possessed, intercepted the man before he reached the children.

She confronted him unflinchingly, standing her ground until the very last second. Just before she was run down, she threw herself to the side and rolled away, returning swiftly to her feet. With surprising agility, she evaded the bandit's attacks. Eventually, reinforcements joined the horseman and she was surrounded. Even cornered, she gave no thought to surrender. She fought on, buying precious time and distracting attention from the fleeing children.

He was aware of the battle well before he reached one of the hills above the village. His keen sense of smell was such that he could almost taste the coppery tang of freshly spilled blood. His acute hearing allowed him to almost feel every blow and see the fall of each new corpse. He could sense the lust of the bandits as well as the terror of the villagers.

A disinterested observer, he paused but briefly to watch. From his vantage point, he saw the woman escape to the hidden hollow. Losing interest, he was about to turn away when the two children emerged, seemly headed toward the same hiding place as the woman.

A brief flicker of some emotion passed over his inscrutable face then, as a deeply buried, almost miniscule and unacknowledged part of his mind noted that the children were something like his Rin. Before he could consider exactly when the human girl child had become HIS Rin, the woman broke from her hiding place and confronted the horseman.

Then, that same infinitesimally small part of him registered surprise. The woman had been safe. Even with his vastly superior senses, he could barely detect the hollow. The humans would never have found her. Why would she leave certain safety behind?

He watched as she faced off with the man on horseback and was surrounded. Still, she fought on. She was not merely defending herself; she taunted her attackers, enraging them. She deliberately drew their attention and fanned their anger, hoping they would forget entirely about the children.

Mortally wounded, she remained standing through an almost inhuman effort of sheer will. Had she merely fought them briefly, they would most likely have been satisfied to rape her and set her free as they would most of the other village women. By the time she collapsed, with two bandits lying in pools of their own blood at her feet, the remaining bandits were so enraged that only the death of the defiant wench would sate their bloodlust. As she sank, barely conscious to the ground, they fell upon her.

For perhaps the first time in his life, Lord Sesshomaru, Demon Lord of the Western Lands, was truly amazed. Seemingly unbidden, his Whip of Light flashed, slicing the bandits in half with an almost casual flick of his wrist before they could violate the woman. He had not even noticed leaving the hilltop and was almost shocked to find himself amid the carnage.

His sword pulsed longingly at his side. With a light touch that was almost a caress, he laid his hand on the hilt. "Wait," he told it softly. Reaching down, he carefully gathered the woman to his chest, his ease of motion belying the fact that he had only one arm. Holding her close, he left the village far behind.

When the smell of blood had finally left his nostrils, he found a small clearing and laid the maiden on the soft, grassy ground beside a small, spring fed pool. He briefly touched her soft skin, gently brushing the thick, raven colored hair from her face. He gazed at her for some time, almost as if he were wondering why he had saved her…

She woke in the arms of an angel. His face was ethereally beautiful, his golden eyes gazing warmly into hers, his long silvery hair spilling over her, gently caressing her bare arms. She smiled softly and snuggled closer to him with a contented sigh as she closed her eyes.

Almost immediately, her eyes flew open again. Delicate, pointed ears. Sharp fangs. Missing arm. This beautiful being was no angel!

"Demon!" she cried, pushing herself up and away from her savior.

He let her go, gazing at her impassively. "Those children," he asked softly, "were they yours?"

She shook her head silently. He lowered his head slightly in acknowledgement. As he thought, she had sacrificed herself for someone else's children.

"Your village is in that direction," he told her, pointing away behind her. "You should be able to reach it by sunset."

Without a word, she turned away and ran in the direction he had pointed. As he watched her leave he said softly to himself, glancing down briefly at the sword at his side "Oh Father, what mischief has your legacy wrought now?"


End file.
